ICC drops charges against former UN employee in 1994 Rwandan Genocide

ICC drops charges against former UN employee in 1994 Rwandan Genocide

2011-12-24 09:24:17 GMT+7 (ICT)

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS (BNO NEWS) -- The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday announced that it has released former United Nations (UN) employee Callixte Mbarushimana, who had been linked to the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.

The ICC's Pre-Trial Chamber I declined to confirm the charges against Mbarushimana and ordered that the arrest warrant issued against him cease to have effect. Upon the completion of the necessary arrangements, Mbarushimana was subsequently released from the ICC's custody in France.

On January 25, Mbarushimana was surrendered to the custody of the ICC after an arrest warrant was issued against him on September 28, 2010. He had been charged with five counts of crimes against humanity, including murder, inhumane acts, rape, torture, and persecution, and eight counts of war crimes, namely attacking civilians, murder, mutilation, cruel treatment, rape, torture, destruction of property and pillaging.

Mbarushimana, 48, was the commander of the Rwandan FDLR rebel force. He moved to France as a political refugee in 2002 and had since worked as a computer technician. The former Rwandan rebel leader denied the charges but a French court approved the extradition to the ICC with the condition that under no circumstances he would be taken back to Rwanda, where lawyers said he would be unlikely to get a fair trial.

But on Friday, the ICC said the Majority of the Chamber "found that there was not sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that Callixte Mbarushimana could be held criminally responsible" under the Rome Statute.

Mbarushimana is a Hutu Rwandan and also a former United Nations (UN) employee. It was alleged that he directed and participated in the murder of 32 people in 1994, including UN employees he was hired to protect.

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